Both sides suffered midweek UEFA Champions League defeats to Manchester clubs, but it was Gladbach who responded the better of the two with Lars Stindl striking the foot of the post and Ibrahima Traore curling wide from the edge of the box. A much-changed Wolfsburg side were tepid by their high-octane standards, although Andre Schürrle and Marcel Schäfer both had chances to break the deadlock before half time.

Stindl sent a swerving effort wide of the far post shortly after the restart, but with clear-cut scoring opportunities at premium, it came as no surprise to see Gladbach winger Patrick Herrmann and Wolfsburg centre forward Bas Dost join the action with 21 minutes remaining. It was the introduction of defensive-minded midfielder Havard Nordtveit that proved decisive, however, with the Norway international crashing in the opener just three minutes before Traore made the points safe with a fine run and finish.

Man of the match

As he showed time and again for Hannover 96 last season, Stindl is at his most effective when given a free attacking role. The 27-year-old, whose clever movement gave the Wolfsburg back four plenty to think about, was only denied a third goal of the season by the woodwork and notched a stunning assist for Traore to wrap up the win.

Talking point

It is hard to believe Gladbach were bottom of the league just two weeks ago. The defensive wobbles that plagued their first five Bundesliga outings of the season appear to be a thing of the past, while they are fast approaching their fluid best in attack.

Match stats

Gladbach’s Fabian Johnson collected his first yellow card in over three years following a first-half challenge on Daniel Caligiuri.

Borussia goalkeeper Yann Sommer (broken nose) was forced to miss a game for the first time since joining the club from FC Basel 1893 in summer 2014.